Custom Rod

[skinner]

That's too much, you figure materials cost up to $200, and the builder charges you $200 for time spent. No one ever got rich building rods, it's a labor of love.

[Stripercoast1]

It all depends on the material selection. There are blanks, guides, and seats, that after labor easily approach the $1000.00 range. When I had my full time shop in N.C., I built 2 Fly rods for a customer, 1 a 10 wgt, at $900.00, and a 12 wgt., at $1100.00.
The blanks cost over 500, the guides were all Fuji Gold cerment, and the seats were Custom inlaid R.L. Winstons. I actually made less than $250.00 for my work. The wraps were not basic either.

[strikezone31]

I know in town who makes custom rods, never lets one go for less than $1000. He uses the best materials and it is all out of love. Like you said Stripercoast1, he makes very little for his efforts.

[Stripercoast1]

I have a $700.00 Surf Rod up next in the shop, I might get $150.00 for myself. The butt wrap will take me 6 to 8 hours alone. No custom rod builder can survive on rods alone, no matter what they charge, as the high end stuff makes up less than 10% of what I do. Repairs are a loss of money, and I stopped doing that years ago. By the time you strip out the old guide, re-wrap it, and epoxy, you've tied up the bench for 3 or 4 hours. Try and tell a guy it's going to cost him $40.00 for a replaced guide on a $100.00 rod!
I do it because I love it, and have built rods since I was 12. I learned from one of the most famous shops during the 60's through the 80's. They were the east coast distributer of Harnell, employed 25 builders, all part time, contract. They put out 100's of rods a month and had a box truck delivering blanks every saturday. I earned bench time by cleaning the shop, then setting grips, splining blanks, until I finally got to do underwraps. Never made a penny, I got to watch the masters as payment.
Murats Custom rods, N. Smithfield Rhode Island, long gone now.
I still have a brand new Harnell 11 foot blank, waiting for the time is right to build it. Still, in my opinion, one of the best blanks ever made and it's almost 40 years old.
I still use and favor a few old Brown Glass Lami's more than 40 years old, restored and re-built, on a daily basis. Most guy's think they are telephone poles, and weigh 5 times what modern graphite does, but it's what I grew up with and can't seem to get comfortable with the light weight stuff. They still handle cow's and cast the big stuff like nothing else.

[DarkSkies]

I earned bench time by cleaning the shop, then setting grips, splining blanks, until I finally got to do underwraps. Never made a penny, I got to watch the masters as payment.

Murats Custom rods, N. Smithfield Rhode Island, long gone now.
I still have a brand new Harnell 11 foot blank, waiting for the time is right to build it. Still, in my opinion, one of the best blanks ever made and it's almost 40 years old.

How many people would be willing to do that today, work somewhere in return for the chance to learn from a master?

Your post reminds me of a past way of living that most people seem to have forgotten or pushed aside. Anytime ya want to start a thread about the old rod builders you remember, Gunny, here or on Stripercoast, I'm sure people would be very interested in reading it.